Nutritional and Specialty Maize Production, Consumption, and Promising Impact on Ethiopia's Food and Nutrition Security: A Review

Abstract

In this paper, the significance of maize as a staple grain in Ethiopia is reviewed. Additionally, it advances our understanding of the relationship between the nutritional composition of maize and the high incidence of micronutrient deficiencies in Ethiopia. Malnourishment is still a serious problem in the population, especially for women and children. Maize is a crucial crop within cereal crops as it is a significant source of proteins and carbs, delivering 17–60% of people's daily protein needs. Vitamin A has a vital part in human growth, the immune system, and eye, vision, and ocular health. Vitamin A deficiency is the main contributor of blindness worldwide and has been linked to immune system development and cell differentiation. Thus, for good health to be attained, maize kernel contents like carbohydrate, protein, and several micronutrients are vital. In white maize constituted 90% of all maize production in Africa, whereas yellow maize accounted for 90% of global production, implying that there is still a shortage of specialty maize in Africa in particular Ethiopia. In Ethiopia, a variety of technologies have recently been made accessible in terms of maize varieties in the aim to alleviate malnutrition in regions where maize is the primary crop. Nutritious and specialty maize varieties like QPM, PVA, sweet corn, and popcorn are released in Ethiopia, but government and extension sector attention is still needed to promote the technology.